


Help Me

by hondansadeensommar



Series: Genesis [2]
Category: EXO (Band), Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Angst, Courtship, Depression, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-21
Updated: 2018-04-21
Packaged: 2019-04-25 15:25:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14381508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hondansadeensommar/pseuds/hondansadeensommar
Summary: Their courtship was over, but that doesn't mean that he cares any less.





	Help Me

**Author's Note:**

> So this is a one-shot extension of chapter 36 of "Genesis". If you aren't familiar with that story, PLEASE go read it first or this won't make ANY sense.

“ _Yeobosayo_?”Park Chanyeol had been surprised to see the phone number of one of Monsta X’s managers pop up on his caller ID, but he’d answered immediately despite the fact that EXO’s courtship of Monsta X’s _maknae_ had ended several weeks earlier.Chanyeol still felt sick every time he thought about what had happened when they had returned from China without Zitao; he had been against ending their courtship because he had seen that Changkyun was attached to their pack, but several of the others had been adamant that it was the only way to protect the young omega from being hurt by everything that had happened.Still, seeing the number pop up was enough for Chanyeol to immediately answer despite the fact that they had been in the middle of breakfast as a group.

“ _Chanyeol-_ hyung _… it’s Jooheon_.”

Chanyeol stood up quickly, walking away from the rest of the group and closing himself up in his own bedroom before he responded.Without knowing what was going on, Chanyeol couldn’t help being concerned that he was about to hear something that would just serve to make them all worry.“Jooheon- _ah_ … is everything okay?”

“ _It’s about Changkyun-_ ah _._ ”There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line, as Chanyeol waited for Jooheon to explain further.“ _He doesn’t know that I’m calling you… no one on our end does.But I can’t just keep watching what’s happening and hoping that it will all work out._ ”

“What’s going on, Jooheon- _ah_?”

“ _He isn’t doing well… Changkyun-_ ah _is barely eating, and I don’t know that he’s slept for more than a few hours a night for a while now… and his panic attacks are getting worse._ ”Chanyeol took a deep breath; he’d been worried about potentially hearing something like that, but actually having Jooheon confirm his fears was much worse than he’d even imagined.“ _Hyung… he was going to pick EXO.He was ready to ask Junmyeon-_ ssi _to give him the bite when you all returned from China…_ ”

It took Chanyeol a moment to process what Jooheon was saying, and even longer to actually formulate an answer.“He was?”

“ _He told Hoseok-_ hyung _yesterday afternoon.We didn’t know…_ ”

“We didn’t, either,” Chanyeol replied, shaking his head.“What are your managers doing?”

“ _Nothing yet… we’re trying to fix things on our own first.But if things don’t change…_ hyung _, I don’t know what we’re going to do.I’m terrified that he’s going to end up making himself really sick, or worse…_ ”Jooheon didn’t need to complete the sentence for Chanyeol to understand exactly what he meant.“ _He’s too thin.I can feel his ribs through his shirt any time I try to hug him, and he’s always tossing and turning whenever I wake up during the night.Yesterday, he spent over an hour trying to pull himself out of a panic attack while locked in a bathroom stall at our company building.I’m terrified…_ ”

“It’s going to be okay, Jooheon- _ah_.We’ll figure this out…”Chanyeol took a deep breath.“I’m going to talk to Junmyeon- _hyung_.If one of us comes by later this afternoon, would you be able to get us into your company building?”

“ _I can let our manager know… it would be easier for you to call him, but I don’t think he’d have a problem letting you in if he knows what you’re here for,_ ” Jooheon replied. 

“Should I call this number back?”

“ _Yeah… I’ll get it all approved.Just… thank you,_ hyung _.I know this isn’t really your problem, but we just don’t have any idea how to help him at this point,_ ” Jooheon commented.

“I’m happy to help… you know that I care about Changkyun- _ah_ , too.Even if we aren’t still courting, I do still have feelings for him…” Chanyeol admitted.

As soon as the phone call ended, Chanyeol hurried out to where the rest of the group was still sitting and put a hand on Junmyeon’s shoulder.“ _Hyung_ … I need to talk to you,” he said softly, trying not to let the rest of the group hear what he was saying.Chanyeol didn’t want to make a big deal in front of everyone, when he didn’t really know how everyone else would feel about what he’d just learned.

“What’s going on?” Junmyeon asked, as soon as Chanyeol had closed the door to his bedroom.“Is everything okay?”

“Jooheon- _ah_ just called me…” Chanyeol began.

“Is Changkyun- _ah_ okay?”

Chanyeol shook his head.“He’s not eating much, barely sleeping… Jooheon- _ah_ said they’re all worried about him, but they don’t know what to do to help him…”

“We’re not courting him, Chanyeol- _ah_ …” Junmyeon began.

“Changkyun- _ah_ was going to ask to join our pack when we got back from China.”Chanyeol watched as Junmyeon stepped back, sinking down onto Chanyeol’s bed.“Jooheon- _ah_ said that he admitted that to Hoseok- _ssi_ yesterday, after he talked Changkyun- _ah_ down from a panic attack.We fucked up, _hyung_ …”

“We didn’t know,” Junmyeon replied, shaking his head.“We did what we thought was best for him, based on what we knew…”

Chanyeol leaned back against the door, closing his eyes.“We need to talk to him, _hyung_.Someone has to get through to him that we still care about him, and he needs to take care of himself,” Chanyeol replied.

Junmyeon nodded.“Do you really think that he would accept hearing from one of us?After we ended things so suddenly…”

“I think it’s pretty obvious that he’s still holding onto our courtship, _hyung_.He’s so depressed that he isn’t taking care of himself… if he won’t listen to his members, maybe it would be easier for him to accept that he needs help if it’s coming from one of us…”Chanyeol paused for a moment.“I want to go see him, _hyung_.I need to see how bad it is for myself.I don’t think I could live with myself if I didn’t at least _try_ to help him…”

“I’ll cover for you, if you can get in to see him,” Junmyeon replied.“I think he’d do better hearing from you, anyway - out of everyone in the pack, you were the closest with him.And Jooheon- _ssi_ trusted you enough to tell you what was going on… clearly he thinks that you’d be able to help.”

Chanyeol sighed, running a hand through his hair.“This is a mess, _hyung_ …”

“I’ll talk to the other guys while you’re gone and explain what’s going on.I think it would be better if they all hear about it from me, rather than seeing something in the gossip articles,” Junmyeon replied.

 

***

 

Chanyeol was careful not to remove his mask until he was safely inside the Starship building, knowing that it would only lead to more questions if anyone saw a member of EXO entering another entertainment company.Given what had been happening with his former members and their respective lawsuits against SM, Chanyeol knew that the press would have a field day if they were given any reason to think that a Korean artist might be jumping ship as well.The fact that EXO had been courting Monsta X’s _maknae_ hadn’t ever come out, so there was no logical explanation for his presence in the building as far as outsiders were concerned.

The manager he was supposed to meet up with was easy enough to spot; Chanyeol recognized the man as someone who had been with Monsta X at the various music shows where they had spent time with Jooheon and Changkyun.“Park Chanyeol- _ssi_ … thank you for coming to talk with Changkyun- _ah_.We’re all at a loss for what to do in this particular situation…”

“I just want to help Changkyun- _ah_ ,” Chanyeol replied, returning the man’s bow before he was led further into the building.“Jooheon- _ah_ made it sound pretty bad…”

“I don’t know that any of us fully know how bad it is,” the manager admitted.“I can tell that he’s losing weight, and the guys have all been coming to me with their concerns.But I don’t know that it will do any good if Changkyun- _ah_ isn’t ready to get help.”Chanyeol nodded, following the man closely.Finally, they arrived outside a small studio.“Let us know if you need anything.”Chanyeol nodded, waiting for the manager to leave before he took a deep breath and slowly pushed the door open. 

The omega was staring at the computer screen, immersed in his work.But what really struck Chanyeol was just how sharp his cheekbones looked - so different than the boy’s usual baby face.It was sickening to see.“Changkyun- _ah_?”The younger rapper looked up, clearly surprised to see him standing in the doorway.“Can I come in?”

Changkyun was quick to nod in response to his question, before moving into a second chair in the room and motioning for Chanyeol to sit down next to him.“What are you doing here, _hyung_?Surely you have something more important to do than come talk to me…”

“ _Aish_ , Changkyun- _ah_ … ending the courtship doesn’t mean that we’ve stopped caring about you,” Chanyeol replied, taking the empty seat and shaking his head.“Jooheon- _ah_ called this morning.He’s worried about you…” 

“I’m okay, _hyung_ …” Changkyun began.

“That isn’t what Jooheon- _ah_ said,” Chanyeol interrupted.He was careful to keep his voice soft; the last thing Chanyeol wanted to do was make Changkyun feel that he was blaming the omega for any of what was going on.Chanyeol knew that the conversation wouldn’t go well if he wasn’t careful about the way he addressed the situation.“How much weight have you lost, pup?”

The omega closed his eyes, clearly uncomfortable with the question.“I’m trying, _hyung_ …”

“I never said you weren’t,” Chanyeol replied, reaching out to stroke his thumb across Changkyun’s cheek.Everything about the boy’s appearance was screaming that Changkyun wasn’t okay, and all Chanyeol wanted was to pull him into his arms and hold him tight.“You’re so thin, Changkyun- _ah_.Jooheon- _ah_ said that your ribs were starting to stick out through your skin, and your cheeks are starting to look hollow… you don’t look healthy.”

There were tears gathering in Changkyun’s eyes as the omega spoke again, and Chanyeol could feel his heart breaking.“I never meant to worry you…”

Chanyeol sighed, shaking his head.“That isn’t what this is about, Changkyun- _ah_.I’m sorry… I’m not good at this kind of thing.But we thought that you would be more comfortable with me being the one to come talk to you…”Chanyeol moved closer to Changkyun, taking the boy’s face in his hands and gently pulling him closer so that he could press a kiss against the omega’s forehead, before leaning in and letting their foreheads rest together for a moment. “We ended things to try and protect you, and all we’ve done is make it all a million times worse for you…”

Chanyeol barely had time to register that Changkyun was crying before the boy collapsed against his chest, burying his face in Chanyeol’s shirt.“I’m so sorry, pup… if we’d known you would take it this way, we would have thought a lot longer and harder before we did anything…”

“It wouldn’t have changed the ending,” Changkyun replied.

Chanyeol sighed, as the enormity of just how badly they’d screwed up the poor omega.“ _Yah_ … we all wanted you in the pack,” Chanyeol replied.“A lot of us _still_ want you.I can’t speak for everyone, because Junmyeon- _hyung_ and I didn’t want to say anything to the others until we knew for sure what was going on.”Chanyeol pulled the omega closer, so that Changkyun was sitting in his lap and he could easily wrap his arms around the boy.“God, you’re so small…”

Chanyeol couldn’t help noticing the fact that Changkyun didn’t respond at all, instead just leaning against his chest and letting the tears continue to flow.It wasn’t something that Chanyeol had prepared himself for; he’d known that this would be difficult, but actually _seeing_ Changkyun collapsing into a mess of tears and sobs hurt much more than Chanyeol had expected.All he could do was sit there and hold the omega until he either explained what was upsetting him or Changkyun calmed down.

It felt as though they sat there for ages, although Chanyeol knew that it was really only a matter of minutes.But eventually, Changkyun sat up slightly as Chanyeol rubbed his back.“I’m sorry that we’ve put you through all of this, Changkyun- _ah_.”

The omega took a deep breath.“It’s over now.”

“That was our mistake,” Chanyeol replied, reaching up to stroke a hand through the younger rapper’s hair in a gesture designed to comfort the younger man.“You have every right to be angry with us, or to hate us for what’s happened.I know that. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if you would be willing to talk to me when I decided to come try and check on you.”

“I can’t hate you,” Changkyun replied, shaking his head.Chanyeol was surprised; he hadn’t expected that.After everything that had happened, Changkyun _should_ have hated them.But the boy wasn’t done.“I loved you.I _still_ love you.And it’s going to be a long time before I can just completely get that out of my head, _hyung_.I know that you didn’t want to hear that, but it’s the truth…”

Chanyeol sighed, leaning in and pressing another kiss against Changkyun’s forehead.“You’re too sweet for you own good,” he commented.“I’m going to talk to Junmyeon- _hyung_ … we’re going to figure out how we can fix this, for everyone’s sake.”

“You don’t have to fix me… I’ll be okay,” Changkyun replied.

“But you’re _not_ okay.”Chanyeol let his hands run down the boy’s side as he spoke to emphasize his point, being careful not to let his emotions show as he felt each individual rib sticking out through the boy’s skin.Changkyun was far too thin - thinner than Chanyeol had ever seen anyone get, despite being in the entertainment industry for years and having a _hyung_ who had struggled with food in the past.“You’re in worse shape than Minseok- _hyung_ was at the worst of his issues with food and exercise.Even if it isn’t intentional, you’re slowly killing yourself.Jooheon- _ah_ said they’re trying to figure out how to help you, but they can’t help you fix this unless _you_ want to fix it.” 

Chanyeol held his breath when he was finished, hoping that the boy would see reason more easily than Minseok had; while he wasn’t sure how much control Changkyun had over what he was doing to his body, Chanyeol knew that without Changkyun’s determination to get better, nothing would change.

The omega took a deep breath.“I _do_.”

Hearing that Changkyun wanted to get better made Chanyeol feel better, and he relaxed slightly.“You need to talk to your psychiatrist about what’s going on,” Chanyeol instructed, hoping that Changkyun would listen to him.“None of us know how to fix this, but he might…”

“They’re going to hospitalize me,” Changkyun began.

“Maybe that’s for the best,” Chanyeol replied, stroking Changkyun’s hair again.“You aren’t eating enough… if you need to be in the hospital so that you can get the help you need, then that’s what you should do.You want to get help…?”

“I don’t want to be like this any more,” Changkyun replied.While it wasn’t exactly the answer Chanyeol had hoped for, he forced himself to ignore the fact that Changkyun hadn’t just said yes.

“Can you call your doctor now?” Chanyeol asked after a moment.

The omega shook his head slowly.“I don’t have a phone… I need manager- _hyung_ ’s phone to call.”

“If we go find him, would you want me to stay with you while you call?” Chanyeol asked softly.Something told him that he needed to stay with the boy for as long as possible to make sure that Changkyun actually made the phone call.“Okay… where do you think he might be?”

“Probably in his office,” Changkyun replied.

Chanyeol nodded, helping the omega stand up before standing up himself.There was a moment where Chanyeol wasn’t sure whether or not the boy was going to pass out, and Chanyeol was quick to make sure that he had an arm around the omega’s shoulders just in case.The last thing he wanted was for the boy to get hurt, when the whole point of his even being in the building was to help Changkyun’s group members get the omega to ask for the help he so desperately needed.

It was easy to ignore the strange looks that he was given, because Chanyeol’s entire focus was on making sure that Changkyun was okay.He understood why he was getting strange looks - it wasn’t every day that an artist was seen wandering around another company’s building.But that didn’t matter; what mattered was that he’d convinced Changkyun to call his doctor and ask for some kind of help.

Monsta X’s manager’s office was tiny compared to what Chanyeol was used to, with just a desk in one corner and two additional chairs tucked away at the side for other people to sit in.

“Changkyun- _ah_ … is everything okay?”Chanyeol watched as the manager shot them both a questioning look, almost as if he wasn’t sure whether or not he liked the fact that Chanyeol was there with the _maknae_.

“I’m not okay, _hyung_ ,” Changkyun admitted, shaking his head.“I need to call my doctor… I can’t keep pretending that everything is okay.”

There was a brief moment of silence, before the manager nodded and pulled out his phone for Changkyun to make the call.“Okay.Do you want some privacy?”

“Please.”Chanyeol let go of the boy so that Changkyun could sit down, before starting to follow the manager out of the room so that Changkyun could have the privacy he was asking for until he felt Changkyun grabbing his wrist.“Not you, _hyung_.”Chanyeol nodded, sitting down in the second chair as the omega searched through the manager’s phone to get the necessary number.

Changkyun turned the phone on speaker once he’d dialed the number, which made Chanyeol feel a little guilty.He hadn’t expected the boy to feel the need to prove to him that the call was real, and not a ploy to get Chanyeol off his back.But as soon as the call connected, all of those thoughts were pushed out of Chanyeol’s mind.

“My name is Im Changkyun.I think… I… I can’t eat, or sleep, and I’m really not okay…”


End file.
